Help with Hypo Nic

[Kuro_Yamaneko]

We recently got back from vacation and found our female hypo nic in bad shape. We don't know what happened to her and the caretaker we hired denies anything, so I was hoping someone could tell us what is wrong with her.

[TheWinWizard]

Looks like a rubbing type of wound. I presume you're talking about the whitish area on her snout? Possible burn?

[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

How long we're you away and how long have you had this boa? Have you known it to ever rub its face on the enclosure before? Boa's will do this out of stress, to escape something they don't like, or RI irritation.

If the caretaker won't give you any clues as to how it happened you may be out of luck. Is there anything rough in the enclosure that could have done this? A latch maybe?

It doesn't look bad and should go away with a couple sheds but I'd try to get some info out of the caretaker. Did they move it? Change heat settings? Feed it? Water it? Anything different at all?


----> Signature <----
*Factoid: "There are no such things as Hogg Island or Columbian boas"

[Evenstar]

How long we're you away and how long have you had this boa? Have you known it to ever rub its face on the enclosure before? Boa's will do this out of stress, to escape something they don't like, or RI irritation.

If the caretaker won't give you any clues as to how it happened you may be out of luck. Is there anything rough in the enclosure that could have done this? A latch maybe?

It doesn't look bad and should go away with a couple sheds but I'd try to get some info out of the caretaker. Did they move it? Change heat settings? Feed it? Water it? Anything different at all?


----> Signature <----
*Factoid: "There are no such things as Hogg Island or Columbian boas"

Agreed! Nose rubs happen but may not have happened when your caretaker was around to see it. Any additional info you can get from the person might help to determine why it happened though.

[Kuro_Yamaneko]

Thank you all for the help, Nose rub makes sense. We will have to get her into a new enclosure with less to rub on.

How long we're you away and how long have you had this boa? Have you known it to ever rub its face on the enclosure before? Boa's will do this out of stress, to escape something they don't like, or RI irritation.

If the caretaker won't give you any clues as to how it happened you may be out of luck. Is there anything rough in the enclosure that could have done this? A latch maybe?

It doesn't look bad and should go away with a couple sheds but I'd try to get some info out of the caretaker. Did they move it? Change heat settings? Feed it? Water it? Anything different at all?


----> Signature <----
*Factoid: "There are no such things as Hogg Island or Columbian boas"

We were away for about 2 weeks. The caretaker did not change anything. they did give water, but did not feed as they aren't comfortable with boas.


Thank you all again

[Evenstar]

So she may have gotten hungry and, therefore, restless. Hince the rubbing. I wouldn't blame the caretaker. If they aren't comfortable with boas, they wouldn't necessarily have known what to look for and not realized that anything was wrong. It'll heal and she'll be fine.

I would keep this in mind though the next time you're planning a vacation so you can maybe find another caretaker who's more familiar with boas.

[Kuro_Yamaneko]

Ok everyone, I need help. It hasn't gone away, it has just gotten worse, it looked like it would go away for a bit, but it has come back fighting.
This is what it looks like today.




Please help, we are really worried.

[Cameron Lamb Exotics]

Looks like it was reopend. Could have possibly rubbed it some more.

[Evenstar]

What type of enclosure do you have her in??

Did you take her to the vet when you first got back from vacation? (sorry if you already answered before - I didn't review the entire thread...)

There may be some underlaying bacterial infection that is causing this to persist and a vet should rule that out first. If that proves negative, then she may be too restless with her enclosure. Some boas will rub if husbandry is not quite right. Update us on the details of her housing, temps, humidity, feeding, etc and we'll go from there....